Democrat Josh Turek Defeats Republican Ashley Hinson in Iowa Senate Race, Flipping Seat
Photo: AxiosDemocratic state Rep. Josh Turek defeated Republican U.S. Rep. Ashley Hinson in Iowa's open U.S. Senate race on Tuesday, flipping a Republican-held seat, according to projections from CBS News, the Associated Press and the Fox News Decision Desk. Turek, 47, a two-time Paralympic gold medalist in wheelchair basketball, will succeed retiring Republican Sen. Joni Ernst. He becomes the first Democrat to win the seat since Tom Harkin's final term in 2008, in a state Donald Trump carried by more than 13 points in 2024. Axios and HuffPost reported the result gives Democrats control of the Senate. Hinson, 43, a former local news anchor who has served in the House since 2021, conceded and congratulated Turek on a hard-fought campaign. Turek wrote on X that after 448 days and visits to all 99 counties, Iowans had made history. Ad spending topped $90 million through September. Senate Majority Leader John Thune had said Hinson had to win for Republicans to hold the majority.
Left-leaning CBS News and HuffPost lead with Turek's biography and the flip, and CBS explains the result through Trump's trade policies, the unpopular Iran war and high fuel prices. CBS also details Hinson's balancing act: she called for ending the war yet opposed limiting presidential war powers. HuffPost frames the result as a broad rejection of Trump and Republicans, and notes Ernst's endorsement of Hinson. Right-leaning Fox News and the Daily Mail also report the flip, but emphasize its meaning for Trump and the GOP. Fox quotes Turek's X post, Thune's warning and Hinson's concession, and puts the win amid wider Republican setbacks. The Daily Mail's headline calls it Trump's nightmare and highlights Trump's remarks on Hinson's weight at a rally, Obama's ad for Turek, and Turek's attacks over five tariff votes and seven Iran war votes. Both sides cite tariffs and the Iran war. Axios, in the alternative group, largely matches the others, calling it an upset and a backlash against Republicans.
How the sides differ Left sources stress Turek's background and voter backlash over the Iran war and costs; right sources stress Trump's setback, his rally remarks and Turek's own words.
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CBS News and HuffPost lead with Turek's Paralympic background and the seat flip, citing the Iran war, tariffs, fuel prices and Hinson's balancing act, and describing a broad rejection of Trump and Republicans.
Axios calls the result a major upset that delivers Democrats Senate control, the first Iowa Democratic Senate win since 2008, and a signal of backlash against Republicans in a Trump-won state.
Fox News and the Daily Mail frame the result as a blow to Trump and the GOP, featuring Turek's X post, Thune and Hinson's concession, and Trump's rally remarks, Obama's ad and Turek's vote attacks.